Pallet Town Party Time
by Kyarorain
Summary: A party is being thrown in Pallet Town, to celebrate a special occasion. It's going to be anything but peaceful, and some people will be in for a surprise. AshxMisty, OakxDelia.
1. Chapter 1

**Pallet Town Party Time**

* * *

I'm starting a multi-chaptered fic, which is going to be considerably light-hearted and filled with fun and romance. There will be Pokéshipping, and Eldershipping too.

Pokémon is copyrighted to Game Freak and Nintendo. I own nothing.

* * *

"Ash, wake up!" A shrill voice broke through the silence that permeated the bedroom. A redhaired girl stood next to the bunk bed with her hands on her hips, her brow creased in annoyance as she attempted to awaken the lone occupant of the bed.

Ash remained fast asleep, curled up underneath the duvet with a peaceful expression on his face. He did however mumble quietly under his breath as he continued to dream. "I am Ash Ketchum, the world's greatest Pokémon Master."

"Ash Ketchum, get your lazy butt out of bed THIS INSTANT!" Misty's voice rose several octaves, her green eyes flashing. Sometimes Ash didn't have a problem getting up in the morning, but then there were the times when he slept like a log. During those times, she had no doubt that a bomb could go off right outside his house and he would continue to sleep.

This time however, Misty's loud voice started to get to Ash and he was roused from his sleep, letting out a whimper of protest as he did so. "Five more minutes, Mom," he moaned, one hand clutching at the bedsheet.

Misty drew in a long breath and exhaled loudly. She really didn't want to have to resort to something like this, but it was getting late and the way she saw it, she had no choice. "Alright, Ash. You want to sleep for a little bit longer, fine."

Ash didn't even hear her as he was already starting to drift off back to sleep, a contented smile spreading over his face. He was blissfully unaware of Misty returning to the room a minute later, a Poké Ball in hand.

"Staryu, Water Gun!" Misty's loud voice commanded.

The starfish Pokémon spurted out a jet of cold water that blasted Ash head on. The dark-haired boy positively screamed as the water hit him, sitting up in bed with wide eyes. His mouth hung open in shock as he tried to comprehend what was happening. What was that cold water and why was he suddenly soaked?

Unfortunately, the water had also managed to hit Pikachu, who had been curled up on the duvet next to Ash. The mouse Pokémon was quite unimpressed by being hit with a cold blast of water while sleeping and decided to let his feelings be known by retaliating with a massive shock of electricity, blasting Ash in the process.

Ash let out a moan and fell back onto the bed, his body twitching as the currents ran through him. Getting shocked by Pikachu after being splashed with water was a very unpleasant experience indeed.

"Pikapi!" Pikachu exclaimed, putting his paws over his mouth with a horrified expression. He hadn't meant to electrocute his trainer. That water had just been very cold and very unexpected and he had merely been acting in self defence. "Pikachu?" he asked anxiously, approaching Ash and looking down at the stunned expression on his trainer's face.

"Ugh." Ash grimaced and shifted into a sitting position, shaking his head in bewilderment. His gaze moved toward Misty, who was still standing there with a big smirk plastered across her face. "Hey, Misty, what's the big idea?" he asked in annoyance.

"Pika!" Pikachu joined in, looking disgruntled as he shook small droplets of water out of his wet fur.

"Sorry, Pikachu." Misty waved a hand at Pikachu, smiling. This only got Ash even more annoyed. So she would apologise to Pikachu, but not to him? Misty looked at Ash. "It is eleven o'clock in the morning," she stated flatly. "Have you forgotten what today is?"

"What's going on? I thought I could hear someone screaming." A brunette appeared in the doorway, blinking her wide blue eyes. Then she saw Ash sitting up in bed, looking soaked while his messy dark hair was even messier than usual. May couldn't help smiling at the sight. "It looks like you've had a bit of a shock," she commented.

"Yeah, well, blame Misty!" Ash pointed accusingly at the redhead. "She thought that it would be funny to give me and Pikachu a shower. By the way, Pikachu did not appreciate that one bit."

"Well, maybe if you had got out of bed when you were supposed to, I wouldn't have had to do it!" Misty folded her arms, looking defiant. She tilted her head. "So, you do know what is happening today, don't you?"

"Uh..." Ash's mind was still a little fuzzy seeing as he had just woken up and that shock hadn't helped matters much. His head was still ringing a bit. "Oh yeah, we're having some party today, aren't we?" he mumbled. "What was it for?"

"It's for your Mom and Professor Oak's first wedding anniversary," May replied helpfully as Misty put a hand to her forehead and groaned in frustration.

"Oh yeah, I remember now!" Ash's eyes lit up. He slowly shook his head. "Man, it's already been a year and it still seems so strange to have Professor Oak for a stepfather." His mouth twitched in a wry smile.

"Whatever. Just get ready then come down and help us out." Misty spread her arms helplessly. "You can't just sleep all day." She turned around sharply and marched out of the room.

Ash waited until Misty was out of earshot. "Jeez, what is her problem anyway?" he muttered. It wasn't unlike Misty to have a bad temper at times, but this morning it seemed to be really bad.

"Your baby sister threw up on her," May replied.

Ash blanched. "Oh, I see." _Wow. Poor Misty, no wonder she's in such an awful mood._

"Yeah. Little siblings are a pain, aren't they?" May raised her voice, winking at Ash and smiling.

"I heard that!" Max yelled from the nearby bathroom.

May just grinned to herself and left, leaving Ash alone in the bedroom.

"Why do I get the feeling that today is going to be crazy?" Ash sighed and put his head in his hands. He didn't mind having his friends around in the least, though he really could do without Misty's bad temper. His mother and Professor Oak had told him he could invite as many friends as he liked to the party, but he had been sensible and only invited Misty, May and Max.

Ash had a horrible feeling though that there might be some uninvited guests turning up today and all he could do was pray that wasn't going to be the case. The party was surely going to be hectic enough without a certain trio causing trouble.

Right now, he really would have liked nothing more than to curl up underneath the covers and try to go back to sleep, but Ash was afraid of incurring Misty's wrath a second time. He most certainly did not have a death wish.

After he had gotten dressed in the smartest clothes he could find, that weren't in the growing heap at the bottom of his closet, Ash went downstairs and headed into the kitchen where he found Brock slaving over the stove, frying bacon and eggs. The delicious smell of breakfast caused his stomach to rumble loudly, announcing his presence before he even had a chance to speak.

"My, somebody's hungry," Brock commented, not even bothering to turn around. "Just sit down and I'll give you your breakfast shortly, Ash."

"Eh, how did you know it was me?" Ash exclaimed, pulling back a chair and seating himself at the table. Brock did not bother to answer his question.

"Here you go," Brock said a few minutes later, placing down a plate laden with eggs, bacon and toast before Ash. Ash eagerly devoured his food, smiling contentedly once the plate was clean.

"Okay then, I'm off to do some training," Ash announced, getting up. He was sure he had some time to train his Pokémon before the party started and it wasn't like anyone actually needed him to do anything, was it?

"Oh, good morning, sweetie. You're up already?" Delia suddenly hurried into the room, clutching a swaddled baby within her arms.

"Uh, what do you mean already?" Ash blinked in consternation, his gaze dropping from his mother's beaming face to the baby. "How is Demi today?"

"She was a little sick this morning, but I think she's feeling much better now," Delia responded. "I've got to go to the market and get some things for the party, so you take care of Demi, alright?" Instead of waiting for a response, she plopped Demi straight into Ash's arms and he stared at his baby sister in bewilderment, while she whizzed around the house and got her things together. "I'll be back soon!" she called out, closing the front door behind her.

Brock had suddenly become aware of an uncomfortable silence that filled the kitchen with its presence and turned around to see Ash staring intently at him with tearful, pleading eyes. "Sorry, Ash, but not everybody has had their breakfast yet, believe it or not, and I have to cook for them. There are a lot of people here, you know. Anyway, I'm sure you will be fine."

"Mime. Mime, mime." Mimey walked past Ash, sweeping eagerly at the floor with a broom. Ash glanced at the Mr. Mime with a suspicious expression. He could swear that it was actually laughing at him.

Ash let out a long, weary sigh. So much for getting in some last minute Pokémon training then. "I guess it's just going to be you, me and the baby, Pikachu." He looked down at the empty spot on the floor where he could have sworn Pikachu was only a minute ago. "Pikachu?"

Demi chose that very moment to let out a loud wail of complaint and wave her tiny arms. Ash ran out of the kitchen, rocking her frantically in his arms and trying to calm her down. "It's okay, don't cry. Misty! May! Somebody help me!"

Misty and May were upstairs, their faces glued to the television set as they watched it in earnest. They were both fawning over Wallace, the Pokémon co-ordinator and trainer of water Pokémon, who was on television and showing off his Pokémon's moves. Neither of them heard Ash crying for help.

Ten minutes had passed and Demi was still screaming. Nobody had come to lend Ash a hand, despite the fact there were supposed to be a lot of people here and Ash was still having trouble. He had tried giving her a bottle and checked her nappy, which was still dry, but she continued to cry despite his best efforts to get her to sleep. Clearly, it was time for a last resort.

Tracey heard the baby crying long before he saw Ash walking through the Pokémon reserve, where he was hard at work giving out food to the Pokémon. "Hey, Ash," he called out, waving. "Be careful, alright? A screaming baby might upset the Pokémon."

"No, really? You think?" Ash's voice was dripping with sarcasm. He was feeling just a little irritated after having had his poor eardrums ravaged for ten minutes.

Tracey was about to ask why Ash would even take the baby out here if he knew it would upset the Pokémon, but then he thought better of it. It seemed that Ash was in a bad mood right now and he was sure the baby was the cause. As he watched Ash walk off, he wondered why the younger boy was even here. Was he up to something?

"Bulbasaur, where are you?" Ash called out, looking around the reserve. "Bulbasaur!" Eventually, the small Pokémon with a bulb on its back came lumbering toward him out of a patch of vegetation. "Hey there, Bulbasaur," Ash said fondly, kneeling before it. "Look, I really need your help."

"Bulba?" Bulbasaur's red eyes slid toward the baby. It took a step back nervously, feeling slightly bothered by the loud noise.

"Please, use your Vine Whip and try and rock her to sleep," Ash pleaded. "Nothing I do works."

Bulbasaur blinked slowly. Was he serious? The look in his trainer's eyes indicated that he was. "Bulbasaur..." The bewildered Pokémon shot out its vines and gently wrapped them around the baby, then rocking her in the air.

Five minutes later, Demi was still crying loudly. Ash sighed and dropped his head. "Okay, it's not working. I'll take her." He reached out and extricated her from the vines. "This is the only thing that's going to work. Use Sleep Powder on her."

Bulbasaur stared at Ash again, looking even more surprised. Then it looked up sharply, at something or someone behind Ash. Ash suddenly had the uncomfortable feeling that someone was standing behind him.

_Please don't let it be Misty, or Mom, or Professor Oak, _Ash prayed, slowly turning his head to see Tracey standing behind him with a disapproving expression on his face.

"Sleep Powder, Ash?" Tracey raised an eyebrow. "Really?"

"Uh... er..." Ash couldn't think of a good enough excuse. Nothing would work. _I'm so busted._

"I'll take her," Tracey said wearily. Ash handed her over, biting his bottom lip in a guilty manner. "Have you tried everything possible to get her to sleep?"

"I fed her and I checked her nappy," Ash said, hanging his head. "I don't know why she won't stop crying. Nothing is working at all, so I thought I'd ask for Bulbasaur's help."

Only Ash would think of something like that. Tracey thought for a few seconds. "Did you burp her after you gave her the bottle?"

Ash's head jerked up and he stared at Tracey with wide eyes. "No, I didn't," he said slowly. _Great. I'm the world's worst babysitter, aren't I? Mom will never let me take care of the baby again. Why did she saddle me with her in the first place?_

"Hmm, maybe that's why." Tracey put Demi over his shoulder and started to pat her back. A minute later, she let out a loud burp. As he continued to pat her, she quietened down.

"You got her to stop crying!" Ash exclaimed, jumping to his feet. "It's a miracle!" He now had new found admiration for Tracey, who had finally managed to shut his baby sister up. "Um... are you going to tell the others about me using Bulbasaur?"

"No. Just don't do it again," Tracey told him, handing Demi over. "She should be able to sleep now. You should take her back inside."

"Thanks, Tracey." Ash beamed at his friend, then turned around and hurried back toward the building. He looked down at Demi, who was starting to drift off to sleep, and sighed in relief, glad that the trouble was over. For now, anyway.


	2. Chapter 2

**Pallet Town Party Time**

Ash walked into the lounge, where he heard the voices of May and Misty. They were sitting down and drinking juice, while discussing something or other that he wasn't terribly bothered about at the moment. He walked over to the vacant couch and flung himself down on it with an exhausted groan.

"Ash, are you okay?" May tilted her head, looking at him curiously.

"Bleh..." Ash could barely be bothered to speak, so he settled for mumbling incoherently.

Misty raised an eyebrow. Ash sure was acting strangely all of a sudden. "What happened?" she asked, sounding just a little concerned.

Finally, Ash managed to speak. "Had to get Demi to sleep," he moaned. "It took forever."

"That's all?" Misty's jaw dropped. Here she was, thinking it could actually be something serious, and instead Ash was just making a big deal out of nothing. What a surprise. "How hard could it be to get her to sleep? She's still so young."

"Do you have a lot of experience with babies?" May looked at Misty.

"Well, no. To be honest, I'm not too fond of babies." Misty looked away, slightly sheepish. "But she seems to sleep all the time." When Ash let out a short, sarcastic laugh, she looked at him in annoyance. "Unless she's in the hands of her incompetent big brother, it seems."

"Hey!" Ash pouted. Was it really necessary of Misty to insult him? Taking care of babies was much harder than she seemed to think it was.

"That's enough." May raised her hands, smiling awkwardly. She didn't want to have to listen to the two of them start arguing. "Anyway, Ash managed to get her to sleep in the end, so he can't really be all that bad."

"I bet he just had his Bulbasaur use Sleep Powder on her," Misty said snidely.

Ash stared at Misty, his jaw dropping. If Misty had suddenly and inexplicably gained the ability to read minds, then he was going to have to be a lot more careful what he thought of around her. A bead of sweat formed on his forehead and he swallowed a lump in his throat. She was going to get really mad at him.

May let out an incredulous laugh. "Now who would do such a thing? There's no way Ash would ever do something like that." She looked at the dark-haired boy. "Right, Ash?"

"Uh huh!" Ash nodded frantically. "Of course I wouldn't do that! That's just silly!" Did his voice sound a little high pitched just then?

Misty stared at Ash for a few seconds, not blinking as she met his nervous gaze then a grin split her face. "Yeah, I suppose you're right," she said to May, chuckling lightly. "I don't think even Ash would do something so ridiculous. How mental would you have to be to come up with such a crazy plan?" She turned her gaze back toward Ash. "Sorry, Ash, I don't really think you're that bad."

Why did Ash suddenly feel like he was being penetrated with lots of sharp and pointy objects? Misty had just been insulting him and the worst thing was, she had no idea what she was doing. Now his mood felt even worse. "Yeah... I'm just going to find Pikachu," he said in a quiet voice, getting off the sofa. "Wonder where it got to?"

Ash didn't even notice Max standing in the doorway when he brushed past him, staring glumly at his feet.

"Hey, Ash!" Max didn't notice the metaphorical gloomy cloud of despair hanging over Ash's head as he followed him. "Can we go and look around the Pokémon reserve together? I want to look at all the Pokémon again."

"No," Ash spoke in a dejected voice. "I don't want to."

Max overtook him, standing in front of Ash and blocking his way forward. "Hey, what are you so upset about? Was it because of what Misty said? She did say you weren't that bad, so it's not like you have any reason to be upset." He paused. "Unless..."

"Max, have you seen Pikachu?" Ash asked quickly, frantically trying to divert Max before he figured it out. The kid was too smart for his own good sometimes.

"You really did try to use Bulbasaur, didn't you?" Max's jaw dropped.

Ash pushed past him and hurried to the kitchen in annoyance, hearing Max's incredulous laughter from behind him. He wished that everyone would just drop the subject already. _Curse that Misty and her psychic powers!_

Eventually, Ash managed to find Pikachu back in the kitchen, eating from a bowl of Pokémon food and not looking guilty at all about having abandoned Ash to the mercy of a baby. Ash collapsed in one of the chairs, slumping over onto the table. He wasn't in the mood for training his Pokémon now after getting what felt like a heaping of insults from Misty. It was strange how easily Misty's teasing hurt him now, when in the past it hadn't bothered him so much. Probably because he wished Misty would just have a little more respect for him. Was that too much to ask?

"Are you okay, Ash?" Professor Oak was also at the table, sipping a mug of coffee. "Cheer up a little. There's going to be a big party today."

Ash decided not to mention the Bulbasaur thing. He didn't think Professor Oak would get mad at him for it, but still it was better not to bring up the subject. "It's Misty," he muttered. "First she woke me up by blasting me with Staryu's Water Gun, and then a moment ago she was practically insulting me."

"Oh. I'm sure she's just having a bad day," Professor Oak said sympathetically. "You know she doesn't really mean what she says."

"Really?" Ash repeated doubtfully. Sometimes he couldn't be sure if Misty really did or not. "She doesn't have to take it out on me." He sighed and rested his chin in one hand. "Maybe she doesn't like me that much right now."

"Now, don't be silly. Misty does care about you a lot," Professor Oak protested. "What is it that they say? You always hurt the ones you love?"

"Yeah well, that doesn't apply to us. We're not even in love," Ash pointed out. That was the second time he had heard something like that in reference to him and Misty, and hearing it again from a different person was a little creepy. Did everyone think he and Misty were in love? Why would they even think that anyway? "I wish she would just get off my back."

"You really have changed, Ash." Brock ceased what he was doing, which was washing the dishes in the sink. "Whenever Misty was teasing you, you used to just fight back and the two of you would end up having massive arguments."

"Maybe I just got tired of arguing," Ash said in a quiet, sulky voice.

"Now look at you, getting all depressed about the way Misty's treating you." Brock walked over, placing a hand on Ash's shoulder. "I know what this is. You want Misty to think of you as a better person. Perhaps it's not just that. No, what I think is you are starting to develop feelings for her."

Ash stared at Brock in disbelief. "Are you serious?"

"Look, just tell her how you feel," Brock said patiently. "You won't regret it."

"You're crazy," Ash stated, looking away and staring moodily at the table. "I don't have feelings for Misty, not at all."

"Yeah, sure," Brock muttered under his breath with a smirk, returning to the sink.

Ash shot an annoyed look at Brock's back. _That's just nuts. How could I ever have feelings for Misty? She's awful when she's in a bad mood and... well, I don't know. Is that the only reason I can think of? I guess she's kind of cute but... no! What am I thinking? _He desperately shook his head, trying to banish the errant thought. Darn that Brock.

In the hallway that connected to the kitchen, Misty stood close to the door, her back pressed against the wall. She had got there in time to hear Ash's accusation of Brock being less than sane and also his declaration of not having any feelings for her.

Now it was her turn to feel just a little hurt, and the knowledge that she actually felt that way actually came as a surprise to her. Misty sighed and turned her back to the kitchen, biting her bottom lip as she walked away. Why was she letting it get to her so much?

A few minutes later, Delia returned, bursting through the front door with her arms full of shopping bags. Mimey immediately rushed forward to take some bags off her as she came into the kitchen.

Ash looked at the bags, raising an eyebrow. "That was a lot of stuff to buy at the last minute," he couldn't help commenting. His mother could be severely disorganised at times.

"Well, better late than never, right?" Delia replied cheerfully, smiling as she walked over to her husband. "Good morning." She wrapped her arms around Oak's shoulders and kissed him.

Brock glanced at them over his shoulder and not for the first time he thought that Professor Oak was an extremely lucky man. Of course, he would never have gone for her because of the fact she was Ash's mother. Despite his love for older women, he could never have attempted to cross that line, ever. He looked away, sighing wistfully and wondering when the day would come that he would find love. Even Ash already had that potential special someone and he didn't even know it yet.

"Is Demi asleep?" Delia asked, pulling away from Professor Oak and looking questioningly at Ash. "She didn't give you too much trouble, did she?" she added teasingly.

"Apart from taking forever to go to sleep, not really," Ash responded. "Babies really are a handful."

"You think she's a handful now? Wait until she's old enough to crawl." Professor Oak nodded sagely. "Then you'll look back on the old days and remember how easy it was back then. It's amazing how much I remember about being a father, even though it's been so many years."

Delia turned her attention to the shopping bags, rummaging through them. "We'd better start getting everything ready for the party. It's beginning in less than two hours. I think we may be running a little late."

The time seemed to fly by as everyone hurried to get everything ready for the party. With Ash, Misty, Brock, Tracey and Max and some other people all helping out, it didn't take so long. Tables and chairs were set up outside in the garden and the food was quickly prepared. It looked like the party was going to be ready on time after all. Half an hour before it was set to begin, people were already arriving and a large crowd had formed.

So far, things were going well. There wasn't even a cloud in the sky and the party was going to be on time. Of course, something could always go wrong when everyone least expected it. Ash had an odd sense of foreboding that told him something was going to happen, but he had that feeling on a daily basis. How could he not, when he got stalked by people out to steal his Pikachu all the time?

Ash was so focused on gazing into the distance with a intense look on his face that he was unaware of somebody coming up behind him. It wasn't until they spoke right into his ear that he finally became aware of their presence.

"Head in the clouds, Ashy-boy?"

"Augh!" Ash screamed, whirling around and stumbling back. His heart pounded rapidly as he looked into a pair of familiar green eyes. "Are you trying to give me a heart attack?" he exclaimed.

"Now what kind of a welcome is that?" Gary smirked, seeming fairly amused at the way Ash had reacted. "It's been a while, hasn't it?"

Ash exhaled heavily and nodded. "Yeah, it has, hasn't it? I haven't even since you since Mom and Professor Oak got married. Pokémon research really is keeping you busy, isn't it?"

"Yeah, but I wasn't going to miss this party." Gary looked toward the crowd of people who were standing around and drinking, while chatting merrily. "It's still kind of strange, isn't it? Your mom and my gramps being married. Just so you know, I'm never going to call you Uncle Ash."

Ash blanched at the idea, and shuddered. "That's good, because if you did, I might just lose my sanity. Anyway, it's great to see you again, really."

"Who is this?" A female voice piped up nearby. Ash glanced sideways to see May approaching, her brother trailing behind her. "One of your friends, Ash?"

"Huh? Oh, that's right, you haven't met." Ash gestured toward Gary. "This is Gary, my childhood friend and Professor Oak's grandson. Gary, these are my friends, May and her brother, Max."

"Nice to meet you." May smiled, waving her hand.

"Oh, so you're Professor Oak's grandson?" Max regarded him with wide eyed curiosity. "Cool."

As the conversation carried on, Misty watched on from a few feet away. Her mouth was set in a faint smile and a gleam of determination was visible in her eyes. A plan was hatching itself right now inside her head. Maybe the plan was a little crazy, but she was liking the sound of it so far.


	3. Chapter 3

**Pallet Town Party Time**

* * *

"Oh, look at all that scrumptious food!" the lavender haired member of Team Rocket moaned as he peered over a bush, looking intently at a table laden with all kinds of edible delights that he only wished he was shoveling into his empty stomach right now. As if on cue, his stomach let out an audible growl.

"Now, James, we didn't come here to steal food," Jessie rebuked him sternly, her blue eyes narrowing. "You know perfectly well we are here to steal all the rare Pokémon that we can find, and of course, Pikachu."

"It looks like they are having a party," the feline Pokémon, Meowth, observed, peeping over the bush. "I can't remember the last time we crashed a party. This should be fun." He gleefully rubbed his paws together, a devious grin spreading across his furry face.

"This is perfect. It shouldn't be too hard to infiltrate a party," Jessie said, her eyes lighting up with glee. "They probably aren't going to notice a few extra guests, are they?"

"As long as we don't draw too much attention to ourselves, it should work a charm." James smiled. "And nobody will complain if we help ourselves to the food. It's going to be a piece of cake. Mmm, cake."

The three Pokémon thieves then slunk away to change, chuckling under their breaths as they thought of all the food and Pokémon they were going to steal at the party.

* * *

It was time for the plan to be put into action. Misty made her way toward Ash and Gary, who were still deep in some conversation. She overheard the word "battle" and immediately figured out the subject of their conversation. No doubt Ash wanted to find out just how much better Gary had become. It seemed like Pokémon battles were all he ever thought about.

Before Gary had a chance to respond to Ash's request for a battle, Misty interrupted them. "Hi," she spoke cheerily. "I hope I'm not interrupting anything."

"Oh, not really," Ash replied. "I was just asking Gary if he wanted to have a Pokémon battle."

Misty resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Of course she wasn't surprised in the least. The redhead turned her attention to Gary. "It's good to see you, Gary. It's been forever since I last saw you."

"No kidding. I don't think we've seen each other since Ash participated in the Johto League, if I remember correctly," Gary recalled. "I heard you returned to your gym in Cerulean City and you've been there ever since."

"Yeah." Misty let out a small sigh, dropping her gaze. She still did feel a little sad about the fact she never got to travel with Ash anymore. The Cerulean City gym was her responsibility now and while she did enjoy battling trainers who wanted a Cascade Badge, she did miss travelling with Ash a lot. "Things sure have changed a lot. Do you ever see those cheerleaders anymore?"

"Um, not really." Gary smiled awkwardly. "I don't need the ego boost anymore. Besides, I can't imagine them cheering me on while I'm reviving fossils."

Ash watched on, seeming slightly impatient. He didn't have a problem with Misty chatting to Gary, but he was pretty keen on having a Pokémon battle and wanted to have it sometime soon. "Hey, Gary..." he wheedled.

"They sure seemed to be fond of you." Misty glanced at Ash in annoyance before turning her gaze back to Gary. "I bet you're still getting attention from girls everywhere, aren't you?" She smiled widely.

"Well, er, not really." Gary rubbed the back of his head, a small bead of sweat forming on his forehead. "I'm too busy with Pokémon researching and I really don't have time for girls. I was lucky that I was able to get some time off to come home."

"Oh, that's a shame." Misty tilted her head sympathetically. "I think that you would make a great boyfriend. Not only are you good looking, but you're much more mature than somebody I know."

"Hey!" Ash exclaimed, as Gary flushed slightly. "Who is this somebody you know, huh?"

Misty turned to him with a conspiratorial smirk. "You think you could be a good boyfriend, Ash?"

"Uh... I..." Ash was caught off guard by the unexpected question and he blinked. "What?"

"It's so obvious Gary would get all the girls," Misty said, crossing her arms. "I don't think you ever could. Have you ever been interested in a girl at all?" She watched Ash's face turn a deep shade of red and felt a twinge of amusement. It seemed like she had managed to hit the right button.

"That's none of your business!" Ash finally snapped, turning and stomping away in a huff. He could ask Gary about that Pokémon battle later. Right now, he just wanted to get away from Misty, who seemed to have a deep fondness for picking on him today. Just what was the matter with her?

"Do I want to know what all that was about?" Gary asked, giving Misty an odd look.

"Oh, I'm just playing a little game with him." Misty smiled conspiratorially.

"Right," Gary said slowly, taking a step back from her. He really didn't want to know why Misty was playing games with Ash. She certainly was acting strange. Had she always been this strange? "Well, see you later." He waved a hand and quickly walked away.

Misty watched his retreating back and exhaled, shaking her head. This crazy plan of hers had better be worth it in the end.

***

_Darn that Misty! I would so make a better boyfriend than Gary. She doesn't know what she's talking about at all. He probably couldn't even remember the names of all those cheerleaders. _Ash made his way to the food table in a gloomy sulk, deciding to do some comfort eating.

"Pikapi?" Pikachu walked beside him, watching his trainer with obvious concern.

"Does Misty really think Gary's better than me?" Ash hung his head. "I don't know why she was teasing me like that. What is her problem anyway?" He stopped as he reached the food table, seeing two adults and a suspiciously short and odd looking person helping themselves to the food. The way they ate the food so fast, it looked like they hadn't eaten in weeks. "Uh, hello?"

"Hm?" Jessie looked up, her eyes widening as she caught sight of Ash. James and Meowth saw him too and looked equally alarmed. Luckily, they were in disguise, so hopefully he wouldn't recognize them. "Why, hello! Isn't this a wonderful party?"

"Yeah, I guess. Are you friends of my mom or Professor Oak?" Ash asked uncertainly. There was something familiar about that red-haired woman and her violet-haired friend. He had the odd feeling he had seen them before. There was also something very strange about that short person sitting on the table. His face and arms were an unnatural shade of beige.

"Oh yes, we've been friends of Professor Oak for a while now. We're Pokémon researchers from, er, Viridian City," James lied quickly. "You might have seen us when we came to visit him a few years back."

"Yeah, I definitely remember seeing a little boy with dark hair when we came here," said the feline Pokémon. "I suppose that must have been you."

Ash was silent, staring at them for a few seconds. Their story didn't sound quite right, but since they did look familiar he figured they were probably telling the truth after all. "Well, it's nice to meet you." He grabbed a plate and heaped some food on it, then walked away. Team Rocket sighed in relief and went back to eating.

As he started to eat from the plate, Ash noticed May standing nearby and watching Team Rocket with a sad expression on her face. "Hey, what's the matter?" he asked, approaching her.

"Look at those guys. If they keep eating at this rate, all the food is going to be gone in a few minutes." May sighed.

Ash looked toward them, raising an eyebrow. "Well, if you're hungry, then why don't you just go and get some food now?"

"Oh, I've already eaten, but what if I get hungry again? Besides, there are people here who haven't eaten yet." May placed her hands on her hips, seeming annoyed. "Maybe I should go over and say something."

"Hey, don't worry about it. Mom cooked plenty of food for everyone. There's probably still some food inside," Ash assured her. "Anyway, I doubt they could eat it all." He fell silent, looking thoughtful. "Uh, May, I need to ask you something."

May turned her blue eyes on him. "What is it?"

"Would I make a good boyfriend?"

The brunette was momentarily sent reeling by the strange and unexpected question. Ash was one of the last people she would have ever expected to be asking questions about relationships. Maybe it had something to do with the fact it was his mother and the Professor's wedding anniversary. She couldn't think of any other reason why.

"Um, what? Why are you asking me?" May asked finally, her face reddening slightly. This was kind of an embarrassing subject to discuss after all. She had never contemplated the idea of what Ash would be like a boyfriend.

"Well, because you're a girl and we know each other?" Ash wondered why she was blushing. Had he said something wrong?

"Uh, fair enough, I suppose." May stared at him quizzically. "Is there something bothering you?"

"It's Misty." Ash looked down at his feet glumly. "She was saying how much better Gary was than me and she didn't seem to think I would make a good boyfriend. I could be so much better than that Gary!" He clenched his fists.

May's mouth twitched in a smile. Now she understood what was going on. "I see. Well, you'll just have to show Misty, won't you?"

"Eh?" Ash looked incredulous. "How do you expect me to do that? Wait... why would I want to do that? I don't want to!" _And, yet... why I am so desperate to prove Misty wrong? It's all Brock's fault for screwing with my head. What's he done to me? And that Misty... what does she even see in Gary anyway?_

May brought a hand to her mouth, giggling. "Really, Ash? Well, you know what I think? You have a lot of good qualities. You are kind and selfless and always helping others. Any girl would be lucky to have you. I've only just met Gary, so I don't know what he's really like and I can't compare the two of you, but you would make a girl very happy and I'm sure Misty knows that too."

"Misty? But she was the one who said..." Ash trailed off, his jaw dropping open. He had the horrible feeling he had been the subject of one of Misty's teases. "Why would she want to tease me about something like that?"

May just grinned at him. "You'll have to figure it out for yourself, Ash. It can't be that hard." She winked and then turned around, walking away.

Ash watched her leave, a frown creasing his forehead. _It couldn't be... no. That's ridiculous. _He hastily shook his head, trying to drive away the errant thought and hastily crammed some food into his mouth, chewing away. A minute later, Ash looked over his shoulder toward the food table to see that Team Rocket was no longer there. _Huh? I wonder where they went..._


	4. Chapter 4

**Pallet Town Party Time**

Gary had decided now would be a good time to go and see his grandfather and he headed toward the laboratory. The young researcher didn't have to go too far before he spotted Professor Oak and Delia sitting together on some chairs with a crowd of people clustered around them. Evidently, the crowd of people were fixated on the little white bundle that Delia was holding in her arms, judging by the cooing and annoying baby talk they kept making.

_How is it that babies can turn people into simpering idiots? _Gary shook his head in disgust. He swore that he wouldn't turn into one, no matter how cute the baby was. _It's not like the baby can even understand what they say, so what's with the ridiculous baby talk?_

Professor Oak had caught sight of Gary and waved an arm. "Hey, Gary! Come over here and meet your aunt!"

_The baby is my aunt. Yeah, like that doesn't sound totally weird. I don't think I'll ever be calling her Aunty either. I can't believe I have an aunt who is also Ash's half-sister. Man, what is the world coming to? _Gary forced a smile and hurried over, pushing his way through the crowd. "Hey, Gramps. Hi, Mrs Ket... er, I mean, Oak..." What was he supposed to call his step grandmother anyway? He couldn't possibly call a woman in her thirties Grams.

"It's okay, Gary. You can just call me Delia, you know." Delia stood up and held the baby out to him. "Do you want to hold Demi?"

Gary hesitantly took the squirming bundle in his arms, peering through the blankets. Wide blue eyes gazed back at him. For a moment, he found himself struck by how incredibly cute the baby was. However, the spell didn't last long, as Demi proceeded to release a loud fart. His raptured expression was immediately replaced with one of sheer disgust.

"I'm afraid she's not terribly ladylike just yet." Delia giggled. Professor Oak was also laughing quite loudly. Gary looked at them in despair. How could they possibly find this so amusing?

"Here." Gary hurriedly gave the baby back to Delia. Sure, Demi was cute, but he really had no desire to hold her any longer, especially if she planned to fart again.

"Goodness. You think that's so bad?" Professor Oak shook his head. "Just wait until you change her nappy."

Gary's face turned pale in horror. Surely his grandfather didn't plan on asking him to change her nappy? "I better go and see if Ash still wants to have that Pokémon Battle. See ya." He turned and ran away as fast as he possibly could.

Delia sat down next to her husband. "Every time we mention nappies, everybody runs away," she said. "When those kids grow up and start having families of their own, they are going to have to do it themselves sooner or later." She looked thoughtful. "I wonder if Ash will end up with Misty? She would make a wonderful daughter in law."

"Who knows?" Professor Oak smiled. "Love is unpredictable. That's the wonderful thing about it."

"Indeed it is." In the past, Delia would have found the idea of herself falling in love with the elderly professor quite absurd and laughable. In her younger days, she had been a student of his, and they had become close friends. He had been a great help to her when she found herself raising Ash alone due to his good for nothing father leaving straight after his birth. Then, Ash had turned ten years old and promptly left on his Pokémon journey.

Delia would have been quite lonely at home with her only child gone, had it not been for Professor Oak. They sought out each other's company on a daily basis and it was a rare moment when they weren't at each other's houses. Then the moment finally happened. She remembered it as well as if it had happened yesterday.

They were at her house alone together, watching a romantic comedy movie that just so happened to be one of Delia's favourites. That, combined with the dim lights, certainly helped to set the mood. As the credits were rolling, their hands brushed together and that brief moment of contact caused a spark to jolt them both. Their eyes had met and the next thing she knew, they were in a passionate embrace.

It was supposed to have been such a well kept secret all those years. At least, Delia and Professor Oak had thought they were doing a good job of keeping it a secret. So it had come as a shock when they eventually announced their relationship to the people of Pallet Town and nobody was surprised in the least. The only one to really be surprised by the news was Ash, who had somehow never managed to notice what was going on.

A shrill wail jolted Delia out of her reminiscing and she turned her gaze toward the crying baby. The smell told her all she needed to know.

"She heard us mentioning nappies, didn't she?" Professor Oak grimaced.

The auburn haired woman chuckled. "I'm sure it was just a coincidence."

"Yeah, right." Professor Oak stood up, gently rocking the baby. "Okay, Demi, don't cry. Daddy's going to change your nappy now." He hurriedly walked back toward the building. Delia watched him leave with a fond smile.

* * *

Misty and Max were not around right now and for Brock that was a very good thing. He was currently prowling around the reserve with a devious gleam in his squinty eyes, checking out all the ladies. There were a few good looking women around, which was a bit of a dilemma. How could he possibly choose one out of all these pretty females? It was just too difficult to do, but he knew he was going to have to make a choice sooner or later.

Eventually, Brock settled for a tall blonde with long legs and a fairly generous bust who was standing around by herself. He immediately zoomed over to her, startling the lady out of her wits.

"I've heard of a saying that blondes have more fun, and if you're looking for fun, then I'm right here." Brock declared, falling to one knee. "If you go on a date with me, then I can assure you that it will be the most fun date you've ever had!"

Instead of falling for his lame pickup line, the lady shrieked and reached into her handbag, hurriedly producing a can of pepper spray. She didn't think twice about squirting it into the unlucky teen's face.

Brock screamed in pain as his eyes burned and curled up in a ball. He faintly heard her muttering something that didn't sound so nice under her breath as she quickly walked away. This was even worse than the many times Misty and Max had pulled his ear. Not only was he in incredible pain, but he'd just been rejected spectacularly. His pride was horribly wounded.

"Brock, is that you?" the voice of a female spoke to him. "Are you alright?"

Brock became very still as he heard it, trying to tell himself that he couldn't possibly have heard it. This had to be some kind of bad dream he was experiencing. Yes, he had dreamed up the entire morning and was still fast asleep in bed. His dreams could be very vivid when they wanted to be.

"Brock?"

Eventually, the terrified breeder managed to force himself to look up into a pair of hooded eyes, set within a face framed by short purple hair. A menacing smile (well, menacing according to Brock's imagination anyway) smile stretched across her face.

"It's been a long time," said Professor Ivy.

Not long enough. Brock screamed.

About a mile away, a man and a woman were looking at a lake and watching the frolicking Poliwag and Poliwhirl merrily ducking in and out of the water's surface. The woman turned to look at the man with a quizzical expression. "Dear, did you just hear a girl scream?"

* * *

Tracey and Max were walking out of the laboratory with trays stacked with glasses and plates when a screaming Brock ran past them, almost toppling poor Max in the process, but luckily he managed to keep himself upright.

"What was that about?" Max wondered, looking over his shoulder toward the building that Brock had disappeared into.

"It sounded like he was afraid of something," Tracey said. "Maybe he got Misty angry."

Max chuckled. "Probably trying to flirt with women again," he muttered, shaking his head ruefully. Brock never gave up when it came to flirting with women, no matter how many times he got his ear pulled.

"I'll go and see what's wrong." Tracey set down his tray on a nearby table. "Can you manage, Max?"

Max nodded, placing down the tray he was carrying. "Sure."

Tracey hurried back inside, making his way through the laboratory and checking all the rooms until he heard the sound of whimpering coming from inside a closet. The young male stared at the closet, blinking in astonishment. "Brock, is that you?" he asked, approaching the closet and rapping on the door.

"She's here," the muffled voice of Brock spoke.

"She? Who is she?" Tracey asked, raising an eyebrow. Brock was scared of a woman?

"I can't say the name. I can't..."

"Hold on, are you talking about that woman whose name you couldn't stand hearing?" Tracey asked in disbelief. He still wasn't over that phobia of his? "Professor Ivy, right?"

A pained whimper answered his question. "Don't say her name!"

"And she's even here? Wow, that's not good. Is she really that scary?" Tracey inquired.

Brock just moaned. "I'm not leaving this closet until she's gone."

"Oh boy." Tracey wondered how to deal with this dilemma. Obviously, this was pretty serious. Brock could hardly stay in the closet all day.

* * *

"Misty, are you sure it's a good idea to mess around with Ash like that?" May asked the redheaded girl. "What if he thinks you really are in love with Gary?"

"Well, that would be interesting." Misty smiled. "If he's getting jealous, then that's a pretty good sign."

"But... supposing he just gives you his blessing and moves on?" May was nonplussed. She couldn't see the logic in Misty's plan at all. It just seemed completely crazy.

Misty shook her head and placed a hand on May's shoulder. "You just don't know about Ash and Gary like I do. Those two used to be so competitive. Ash won't let me go without a fight if he really is into me. So, he even asked you if he would make a good boyfriend? Oh yeah, I pressed his buttons alright."

"It seems a bit cruel to tease him like that," May murmured. "First you use Water Gun to get him out of bed, then you play games with his head." She spread her arms helplessly. "What did Ash ever do to you?"

"I suppose you have a point." Misty smiled wryly and shook her head. "This morning, I heard him tell Brock he didn't have any feelings for me. I don't know if he really means it or not, but I'm going to get the truth out of him. Besides, Ash is so dense that even if he did have feelings for me, he probably couldn't figure it out by himself."

"Hmm." May folded her arms. "I see. If he was getting jealous of Gary, then it could be a good sign."

"Exactly." Misty's smile widened. "Besides, Ash would never really believe that I had fallen for Gary, not in a million years."

A few minutes later, Misty saw Ash wandering over toward them and she immediately interrupted her conversation with May. "Gary is so dreamy!" she exclaimed loudly. May was confused for a few seconds and wondered if Misty had lost her sanity until she caught sight of Ash. "Gary is so hot and he's really handsome," Misty added, clasping her hands.

Ash frowned as he approached them, having heard Misty. It seemed she was still playing that ridiculous game of hers. Well, he could play games as well. "Hey, Misty, I wish you luck with Gary," he said cheerfully, refusing to rise to the bait. "You two would make such a great couple."

"Huh?" Misty stared blankly at him.

"Maybe I'll even be best man at your wedding," Ash said enthusiastically. "And you'd better let me be a godfather to one of your children as well. How great is it that two of my friends are getting together? Wow!"

Misty's face turned bright red. May backed away, noticing the danger signs of Misty about to explode.

"ASH, YOU IDIOT!" Misty screamed, producing a giant mallet out of hammerspace and swinging it. May winced as she watched Ash go flying. The angry and embarrassed redhead stomped away, smoke practically spurting out of her ears.

Ash lay sprawled out on the ground, stars whirling around his head. Had he gone too far there? Maybe he had, but she had been asking for it anyway.

May stood over him, looking sympathetic. "Are you okay?"

"I'll live, I think," Ash groaned.


	5. Chapter 5

**Pallet Town Party Time**

Professor Oak was so going to kill him for this if he ever found out. Yet, what else could Tracey have done? He couldn't let Brock sit in that cupboard all day in fear of Professor Ivy and decided to help him out somehow. Maybe it wasn't the most sensible idea... no, it wasn't really sensible at all, but it would probably help. That was a very big probably though.

Still, what was the harm in two friends sitting around a table and having a few beers? Tracey looked around at the empty beer cans and frowned. Was that really just a few? His head was becoming a little swimmy and he almost couldn't remember what he was doing in the first place. Wasn't there a party he was meant to be helping out with? But then again, drinking beer was much more fun than carrying trays around and listening to stuffy people in suits ramble on about what a great professor Professor Oak was. Yes, Tracey did admire Professor Oak, but he didn't really want to spend all day listening to stuffy old men talking about Oak's lectures.

"And this Officer Jenny had legs all the way up to here!" Brock held a hand over the table. "I still have yet to see an Officer Jenny with legs as long as hers, or even longer." He drained the contents of the beer can and smiled goofily. "Officer Jenny is a real beautiful lady. Come to think of it, why do all Officer Jennys have the same chest size? I wouldn't mind seeing one who's had a boob job for a change."

Brock could be really perverted when drunk. Tracey knew Brock was a bit of a womanizer, but hearing him talk like that was pretty surprising. "You should have been there when we met Lorelei in the Orange Islands," he slurred. "Even Misty couldn't take her eyes off that rack." He had a faint feeling that they hadn't called her Lorelei, but rather some different name coined by a certain dubbing company too incompetent to look up the correct name for a certain character, but shrugged it off. The alcohol was probably just making him think strange things.

"Oh, the Orange Islands..." Brock paused, gazing at the beer can. "You all had a lot of fun, huh? It's too bad I wasn't around but it wasn't like I had a bad time. Not until then, anyway."

"Then?" Tracey frowned. "You mean whatever happened with Professor Ivy?" Oh wait, wasn't the point of this drinking session to get Brock's mind off Professor Ivy? Whoops.

Brock slumped forward onto the table and let out a mournful sigh, the beer can clattering from his grasp. "That name," he moaned.

"Here, have another drink." Tracey quickly pushed an unopened can of beer toward him. Maybe this wasn't going to work out after all and he should stop while he was ahead.

Brock popped open the can and chugged it for a few seconds, then placed it down. "It was awful," he whispered.

Tracey gazed at Brock curiously. Could it be that after all these years Brock was actually about to spill the secret that everybody had been wondering about for years? He leaned forward. "What was?" he asked in an excited voice.

"You see..." Brock started.

* * *

"Oh, hello, Professor Ivy. It certainly is a pleasant surprise to see you here," Professor Oak greeted the blue-haired female professor. He had just put the baby to sleep and was now mingling with the guests. "I wasn't expecting to see you."

"I heard you were having a party and thought I would come over. It has been a long time since we last spoke." Professor Ivy smiled. "I saw Brock just now and he was absolutely terrified of me. How strange is that?"

"He still has that phobia?" Professor Oak fell silent for a few seconds, shaking his head. "Do you have any idea what all that was about?"

"Hmm, well, we didn't really part on the best of terms," Professor Ivy murmured.

The elderly man regarded her with surprise. "How come? I thought Brock loved it there and then he came back so depressed and couldn't even stand the mention of your name."

"There was an incident." Professor Ivy's eyes clouded over, then she recovered. "I thought that updated article you made on the separate evolutions of Eevee was quite well done. I was surprised to hear that there were two more evolutions of Eevee. Maybe there are even more out there that haven't been discovered."

Professor Oak blinked at her in consternation. Why was she changing the subject? "Um... about Brock..."

"Though isn't it strange that Eevee doesn't evolve into Leafeon with the use of a Leaf Stone?" Professor Ivy muttered. "That's quite bizarre."

"Yes, quite..." Professor Oak sighed. It didn't seem like he was going to get an answer out of the female professor.

* * *

"Okay, Gary, I'm going to beat you!" Ash said confidently, grabbing a Poké Ball from his waist. "I choose you, Sceptile!"

"Keep on dreaming, Ashy-boy," Gary taunted, throwing a Poké Ball. "Go, Magmar!"

"Sceptile, use Quick Attack!" Ash ordered, not feeling at all bothered by the fact his Grass type was up against a Fire type.

Gary smirked as Sceptile slammed into his Magmar. "You're going to have to do a lot better than that to win against Magmar with that Sceptile! Magmar, use Fire Blast!"

"Sceptile, jump and dodge it!" Ash cried out.

Sceptile swiftly jumped up into the air, narrowly avoiding the plumes of fire that raced toward it at high speed.

"Now use Bullet Seed!"

Sceptile, still up in the air, opened up its mouth and released a massive hail of bullets. Magmar raised its arms in an effort to defend itself as the seed bullets rained down upon it.

"Get close to it and use Flamethrower!" Gary ordered.

Sceptile had just landed on the ground when Magmar rushed toward it and shot out a massive blast of flames The grass Pokémon wasn't quick enough to avoid the attack and ended up being engulfed by the flames.

"Sceptile!" Ash exclaimed in shock, looking horrified. When the fire faded, he saw Sceptile was still standing, seeming just a little worse for wear, and smiled. "Okay, Sceptile, we can do this. Leaf Blade now!"

* * *

"You did what?" Tracey could barely resist the urge to howl with laughter. It wouldn't be nice to do that when Brock had just revealed a dark secret in confidence.

"I'm telling you, she was giving me all the signs," Brock protested. "We were watching a movie alone, the lights were down... and she'd even picked a romantic comedy. It was like she was asking me to go ahead and make a move."

"Kissing your boss? That's just..." Tracey shook his head. "So did she get mad at you?"

"No. I think she actually felt sorry for me." Brock sighed dismally. "The worst thing is, Professor Ivy told me that she was..." He glanced around as if to make sure that nobody else was there. "She was a lesbian, Tracey!"

Tracey stared at him, his eyes growing slightly wider. He hadn't been expecting that plot twist.

"And do you know what she said next?" Brock fell silent. Tracey almost thought he could see a blue aura forming around Brock.

"What?" Tracey asked, leaning closer. This had to be the hardest part for Brock to tell judging by the way he looked right now.

"She... she..." Brock hesitated. This was it, the reason why he really was afraid of Professor Ivy. "She admitted to having a secret dungeon underneath her lab and asked me if I wanted to come down there and watch her have an... an... an orgy with her assistants!" He dissolved into near hysterical sobs, burying his face in his hands.

"What's an orgy?"

Tracey looked up in horror to see Max standing there with a curious look on his face. Even worse, May was standing right behind her younger brother, looking downright pissed off. His mouth grew very dry. "It... er, it refers to people indulging themselves, like when they go shopping and spend way too much," he said hastily.

"So Professor Ivy asked Brock if he wanted to see them go shopping in her dungeon?" Max asked, frowning in confusion.

"Max, that's enough," May grabbed him by the shoulders and scooted him toward the door. "Why don't you go back outside and pass around some snacks or something? Go on!"

Max was about to protest, but changed his mind when he saw the annoyed expression on her face and hurried off.

May drew in a deep breath and slowly let it out, walking toward the table. "I don't know who Professor Ivy is or her assistants are and I don't really care. Why are you two sitting around and drinking when there's a party going on outside?"

Tracey swallowed nervously. "Well, you see, Brock was traumatised because this Professor Ivy is at the party and I was just trying to help out."

"Can I go back to the cupboard now?" Brock moaned, his head buried in his arms as he slumped over on the table.

Tracey sighed and put a hand against his head. "The beer isn't working, is it?"

May looked around at all the empty cans with a dry look. "No, it really isn't."

Tracey got up from the chair. "Come on, Brock, why don't we go out and rejoin the party? I'm sure the fresh air will do some good."

"No... I don't want to..." Brock moaned.

"Look, I promise we won't let Professor Ivy kidnap you and make you watch a lesbian orgy, or whatever it is you're so scared of," Tracey said in exasperation. "Come on."

"Oh, did you know some late guests came to the party just now?" May suddenly spoke up. "One of them was a really attractive woman. I think she said she was hoping to hook up with somebody at the party..." She looked down at the empty chair where Brock had been just a second ago and blinked. "That was fast."

"Thanks for that," Tracey muttered tiredly. "I don't know how much more I could have taken."

"So, are you planning to rejoin the party?" May asked.

"Sure, after I've finished cleaning up." Tracey grimaced as he looked at the table. What had he been thinking? "I can't believe Brock didn't want to see a lesbian orgy." He noticed May giving him a strange look and waved his hands, chuckling nervously. "Sorry. It's the alcohol talking."

May shook her head and left the room. This was an exceedingly odd day indeed.

* * *

Sceptile and Magmar fell to their knees, both of them exhausted from the battle. Sceptile's body was covered with burns and Magmar had quite a few scratches all over his body as well.

"Come on, Sceptile, you can do it!" Ash urged the reptile Pokémon.

"Don't give up, Magmar!" Gary shouted.

"Use Solarbeam now!" Ash called out, glancing up at the clear skies. The nodules on Sceptile's back glowed white as it began to gather in the energy from the sun.

"Use Flamethrower!"

Just as Magmar released a long stream of flames that raced toward Sceptile, the green lizard opened its mouth and expelled a massive beam of solar energy. The two attacks collided in mid-air and resulted in a giant explosion that engulfed the two Pokémon.

Once the smoke had cleared, Ash and Gary saw that Magmar and Sceptile both lay on their backs, their eyes swirling.

"Looks like it's a draw," Ash said, smiling and walking over to Sceptile. "Hey, you did a great job, Sceptile."

"You too, Magmar." Gary sat next to his Pokémon. "Now take a nice rest." He held out Magmar's Poké Ball and recalled it. Ash did the same with Sceptile.

They heard the sound of clapping and looked up to see Misty walking toward them. "Brilliant job, Gary!" she exclaimed, smiling cheerfully. "You did so well!"

Ash shot her a look of annoyance. "Hey, how come you're only congratulating Gary?"

"Your ego's big enough already," Misty pointed out, smirking slightly. "You don't need me to stroke it for you."

"Excuse me?" Ash was suddenly in her face. "I do not have a big ego!"

"What's the matter?" Misty shot back. "Are you jealous?"

"Jealous?" Ash exclaimed. "Why on earth would I be jealous?"

"It's pretty clear," Misty said smugly. "Why are you getting all upset because I'm praising Gary? Funny, you were rooting for us just a few minutes ago."

"Yeah, and I recall you getting mad and hitting me with a mallet!" Ash was so confused. "What is the matter with you?"

"Um, guys?" Gary spoke.

"What's the matter is that you can't figure anything out!" Misty exclaimed. "Do I have to spell everything out for you?"

"Well, maybe you should! Did I do something to make you mad?" Ash asked. "Why don't you quit being so ornery and just say what's on your mind?"

"Ornery?" Misty clenched her fists in irritation. "I am not being _ornery, _Ash Ketchum!"

"GUYS!" Gary yelled at the top of his voice, startling them.

"What?" Ash spoke in a frustrated voice, glancing at Gary. He didn't mean to use that tone with him, but Misty was really getting on his nerves and he couldn't help it.

"Team Rocket is stealing your Pokémon," Gary said flatly, raising his arm and pointing.

Ash and Misty whirled around to catch sight of Pikachu and Azurill in the clutches of two large hands, attached to long snaking arms that in turn were connected to a machine. Jessie, James and Meowth could clearly be seen in the cockpit. The young pair cried out the names of their respective Pokémon as they looked on in horror.

"Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!" Ash called out to the struggling mouse Pokémon.

Pikachu promptly used Thunderbolt as Ash had ordered. Of course, it did nothing at all. Somehow, Ash was surprised by this despite the fact Team Rocket frequently electric proofed their machines.

Jessie raised a hand to her mouth and laughed deviously. "When will you ever learn, twerp?"

"You should know by now we always protect our machines against electricity. We've only done it like, almost every single time," James said wearily.

"Well, now that our bellies are full thanks to all the free food and we've got ourselves a haul, we'll be scarpering now!" Meowth waved at them.

"Team Rocket!" Ash shouted angrily as the machine turned around and started to roll away. "Pikachu!"

"Come on, Ash, we've got to stop them," Misty said impatiently, giving chase. "Standing around and shouting won't do any good."

"I know that," Ash muttered sulkily, chasing after the machine as well.

The machine rolled on through the reserve as Team Rocket hastily attempted to reach their balloon before Ash and Misty could catch up and put a stop to their latest attempt to steal Pokémon.

"Can't this machine go any faster?" James complained.

"Hey, it's going as fast as it can, alright?" Meowth frowned. "Probably wouldn't have hurt to have given it a test run beforehand, but we were kind of in a hurry."

Suddenly, the machine rocked sharply and the trio were almost sent flying from their seats.

"What was that?" Jessie clutched onto the chair. "Something hit the machine!"

Another sharp blow caused the machine to rock and they clung to their chairs, struggling to stay seated.

"I think the twerps might be trying to knock this thing down." Meowth grimaced.

Down on the ground, Ash was encouraging Bayleef to hit the machine as hard as she could. The grass type had helpfully come running and slammed into the machine, slowing it down and allowing them to catch up. Misty joined in, sending out Gyarados, ordering it to hit the machine with its tail.

After a few attempts, the machine did eventually topple over and hit the ground with a loud crash. Clouds of smoke and dust rose up around it. Ash and Misty hurried to where Pikachu and Azurill were still struggling to get out of the mechanical hands.

"Swellow, free Pikachu and Azurill!!" Ash threw Swellow's Poké Ball. The blue swallow Pokémon appeared in a flash of white light and dove down to strike the mechanical hands with a glowing wing. They broke apart, freeing Pikachu and Azurill who ran back to their trainers.

Jessie, James and Meowth emerged from the machine, looking dishevelled and miserable.

"Well, that plan was epic fail," James muttered.

"I knew we should have spent more time working on this machine." Meowth groaned. "At least we got free food."

"But without money, it won't be long before our stomachs are empty again," Jessie complained. "The boss is getting tired of paying us when we don't give him any Pokémon."

"Pikachu, use Thunderbolt now!" Ash ordered, pointing at Team Rocket.

"Pika...chuuuuuu!" Pikachu released a massive bolt of electricity. Team Rocket screamed in pain as the thousands of volts coursed through their twitching bodies. A few seconds later, they were sent flying into the air.

"We're blasting off again!" the trio shouted, vanishing into the air. A twinkle of light marked the spot where they had disappeared.

"Those guys never know when to give up, huh?" Misty smiled slightly in exasperation.

"No kidding. They have to be the most stubborn people on the planet," Ash said, smiling as well.

The pair looked at each other, still smiling, and time suddenly stood still as they remembered that they had been fighting just five minutes earlier and what they were fighting about in the first place.

"So, Misty, are you ever going to tell me what is it I'm not getting?" Ash asked. "Because I'm really not. You don't actually have a crush on Gary, do you?"

Misty bit down on her bottom lip and stared at her feet. "No," she admitted sheepishly, "I was just playing a game with you. Did you figure that out all by yourself?"

"Well, May did drop a little hint, and then you got mad at me and hit me with your mallet." Ash gave her a dry look. "You weren't very subtle, Misty."

"No... I guess I wasn't." Misty exhaled.

"Did you really mean it about Gary being a better boyfriend than me?"

That question caught Misty completely off guard. Her face turned redder than a tomato and her eyes widened. Now she really was wishing that she hadn't said that before. "Uh... er... well, how would I know? I've never dated either of you so..." Why wouldn't Team Rocket come back for another attack? She really needed a diversion right now. If she was really lucky, the hole would open up and swallow her.

"Eh, you would probably prefer Gary anyway," Ash mumbled, turning his head away. "Because apparently I'm a crazy person."

"Huh? What? I didn't say that!" Misty exclaimed.

"Sure you did! This morning when you were talking about Bulbasaur and Sleep Powder..." Ash trailed off, his eyes widening. Oops. He wasn't supposed to bring that up. His mouth wasn't quite big enough for the giant foot suddenly lodged in there.

Misty stared at him blankly, trying to remember the conversation from earlier that morning. "But, Ash, I did say you weren't that bad... hold on... you're not saying you really did use Sleep Powder?"

Now Ash was wishing for a convenient diversion. He would quite happily have welcomed Team Rocket back too. The ashamed look on his face told Misty all she needed to know.

Strangely enough, Misty was laughing. Ash would have expected her to be calling him every single synonym for idiot, and yelling at him. A lot. So why was she laughing? It wasn't that funny, was it?

"Oh, Ash!" Misty could barely contain the laughter bubbling up in her. "You really are something special. That's what I love so much about you." The redhead suddenly froze, her mouth dropping open in horror. She sent a silent prayer to the heavens that Ash hadn't picked up on that word.

Ash stared at her. _Did she say love just now? Or was I just imagining it? Is that why she's been acting weird all day? That's crazy... Misty can't have feelings for me! _Yet, as he saw the deep blush on her face and the terror in her aquamarine eyes, he was starting to think it was true. His face grew hot. _Misty doesn't like Gary after all. She really likes me? _His head was spinning at the relevation. Misty liked him. She liked him in that way.

Misty fell to her knees, groaning. "I'm so embarrassed I could die!" she wailed.

"Misty..." Ash walked over to her and held out a hand to her. "Come on. You don't have to sit on the ground like that."

Misty stared at his hand for a few seconds, then took it and he helped her to her feet. "Uh, about what I said," she started to speak.

"That's why you've been acting so crazy all day?" Ash guessed. "Gee, Misty, why didn't you just say so?"

Misty stared at him, flabbergasted. "It's not that simple, Ash!" she exclaimed in exasperation. "Besides, I wasn't really sure how you would feel." Was it even possible for Ash to have romantic feelings? Somehow, she severely doubted it.

"Oh... well, I'm actually glad," Ash said, "that you don't really have feelings for Gary. I still don't like losing to him, you know, even though we aren't actually rivals anymore. Plus, I would totally make a better boyfriend than him."

"So you were jealous." Misty giggled lightly. "I knew it!"

Ash flushed slightly. "Hey, I'm just saying you could do much better than him. Anyway, I'm tired of games. Aren't you?"

"Yeah." Misty exhaled. To tell the truth, it had been getting to be a bit of a drag and even annoying Ash could get tiring after a while. "So, you definitely want to make a go of it? You know... this whole relationship thing?"

If Ash was to be entirely honest, he was still pretty clueless about relationships, but he did like Misty a lot. Maybe he really did like her more than a friend and he hadn't realised it yet. _Well, she is kind of cute really. I've never noticed before how pretty her eyes are. Maybe Brock was right after all. Man, this whole love thing does seem complicated, but I think I can handle it. I hope so anyway._

"... Ash?"

Ash snapped out of his thoughts and looked at her with a bright smile. "Sure, Misty, let's give it a go. But please don't get mad at me if I screw up, alright?"

Misty shook her head with a wry smile. Ash really could say some unpredictable things, but it was fine. His unpredictability was just one of his many charms after all. "Come on, let's get back to the party."

As they started walking back, they slipped their hands into each other's.

The party went on without any further incidents.

Brock managed to avoid seeing Professor Ivy again on his search for the mysterious woman May had spoken of.

Tracey was fortunate in that nobody noticed he had been drinking. He doubted Professor Oak would notice the missing beer cans, seeing as he rarely ever drank the stuff.

Max soon forgot about wanting to find out what an orgy really was and his innocence was saved for now.

May beat her previous record of scoffing fifteen beefburgers - this time, she managed seventeen.

Gary was hugely relieved to discover Misty was done playing games.

Ash and Misty had another minor argument. They really couldn't help it.

Professor Oak wondered why Brock was wandering around and singing about some mystery woman he was looking for. He even thought the boy might have been drunk at first, but decided it was just Brock being Brock.

Delia saw Ash and Misty holding hands and proceeded to make a big fuss about it, much to the two's extreme embarrassment.

Team Rocket slunk away to lick their wounds, swearing to come back the next day to get their revenge and finally steal Pikachu once and for all.

Eventually, the party came to an end.


End file.
